Method and Apparatus for Producing Gallium Arsenide and Silicon Composites and Devices Incorporating Same

ABSTRACT

The present invention includes methods for producing GaAs/Si composites, GaAs/Si composites, apparatus for preparing GaAs/Si composites, and a variety of electronic and photoelectric circuits and devices incorporating GaAs/Si composites of the present invention.

RELATED APPLICATION DATA

This application is a divisional of U.S. application Ser. No.11/973,680, filed Oct. 10, 2007, now U.S. Pat. No. 7,923,758, which is adivisional of application Ser. No. 10/773,886 filed Feb. 6, 2004, whichare hereby incorporated in their entirety herein by reference.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to a method and apparatus for producinglayered composites of gallium arsenide and silicon, layered articlesproduced there by and devices produced therefrom.

The III-V compound semiconductor GaAs has a rapidly growing impact onelectronic circuits and optoelectronic devices. Thus the controlpreparation of GaAs films of appreciable technological interest. Ingeneral, in order to achieve high-quality epitaxial growth, GaAs filmsor grown as GaAs wafers, which are rather expensive. On the other in themost important achieve semiconductor silicon is nonstandard substratefor high-quality of gallium arsenide preparations. The GaAs devicesprepared on silicon substrates, however, would be considered to increasethe flexibility of optoelectronic device structures.

The ability to efficiently effectively layer gallium arsenide on siliconhas been the subject of substantial research over the past severaldecades in light of the wide variety of electrical devices that can beproduced from the chemically and physically uniform combination of thematerials.

One of the difficulties in combining these two materials is that it hasbeen difficult to layer them together so as to achieve a stoichiometriccombination of the two species. This is naturally important to providereliable and consistent electrical or photoelectrical function indevices made from this combination. This is also important to theability of such processes to be scaled for production of large amountsof these composites of reproducible quality.

Beyond the challenge of uniform and stoichiometric combination, it isalso desirable to be able to create layered composite materials whosesmoothness is on the order of nanometers in scale. This is particularlyimportant to the production of electronic circuits and devices thatwould benefit from these composites, such as rectifiers, as well asphotoelectric devices, such as sensors and optoelectronic mutliplexers.

For instance, the combination of the excellent high-frequency electricalproperties of the III-V compound semiconductor GaAs with thesophisticated technology of Si has been very attractive for thesemiconductor industry since a long time.⁴ GaAs offers high carriermobility and fast optoelectronic properties, which are needed forhigh-frequency devices and laser applications. In order to take fulladvantage of the GaAs properties an almost perfect crystal structure andvery low impurity concentration are required. These top-quality demandsincrease the price of GaAs devices clearly beyond the cost of Si baseddevices. The speed of GaAs linked with the meanwhile perfect and ratherinexpensive production of Si seems the perfect optoelectronic merge fromthe technology and economic point of views. In the last few years,several research groups have reported epitaxial growth of thin-film GaAson Si wafers.^(14,15) The most frequently applied method to formthin-film GaAs on Si is molecular beam epitaxy (MBE). However, it seemsthat MBE is eventually not the superior method to conquer the problemsof large lattice mismatch (4.1%) and thermal expansion coefficient (2.5times) between GaAs and Si.¹ In this paper, we introduce pulsed-laserdeposition (PLD) as a cost-effective alternative method to achievehigh-quality GaAs films on Si. We demonstrate that the PLD of GaAs oncounter-doped Si forms a functional pn-junction. The device shows noveland appealing features, which are applicable to telecommunicationpurposes.

Accordingly, the present invention allows one to achieve GaAs/Sicomposites, such as GaAs films on Si, which are in substantiallystoichiometric combination.

The present invention further permits one to prepare layered GaAs/Sicomposites, such as GaAs films on a Si layer, that are able to reachlevels of smoothness on nanometer scale.

In addition to the features mentioned above, objects and advantages ofthe present invention will be readily apparent upon a reading of thefollowing description and through practice of the present invention.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

In general terms, the present invention includes methods for producingGaAs/Si composites, GaAs/Si composites, apparatus for preparing GaAs/Sicomposites, and a variety of electronic and photoelectric circuits anddevices incorporating GaAs/Si composites of the present invention.

The present invention demonstrates the pulsed laser deposition iscapable of the formation of thin-film GaAs on silicon with outstandingquality.

The present invention also includes p-GaAs/n-Si and n-GaAs/p-Sihetero-structures produced by depositing thin-film GaAs on Si waferswith pulsed-laser deposition (PLD).

The method of the present invention demonstrates that p-type GaAsdeposit upon n-type silicon forms a rectifying hetero-pairing withappealing optoelectronic features.

In general terms, the present invention includes a method for the laserdeposition or ablation of a layer of gallium arsenide upon a silicon orsilicon-bearing substrate. This method comprises the steps of (a)providing in a vacuum: (1) a target comprising a target surface bearinggallium arsenide; and (2) a substrate comprising a substrate surfacebearing silicon; wherein said target surface and said substrate surfaceare in opposed alignment (i.e., at an angle less than 90 degrees); and(b) irradiating said gallium arsenide with a laser so as to vaporizesaid gallium arsenide, so as to cause said gallium arsenide to bedeposited upon said silicon uniformly and in a substantiallystoichiometric ratio.

The target and substrate surfaces may be placed in substantiallyparallel alignment to achieve uniform deposition or, where a greaterarea of the substrate is to be covered, the target surface may bearranged at an angle to the substrate surface to expose a greater areaof the substrate surface to the GaAs plume. The degree of this anglewill naturally depend upon how much of the substrate surface is to beexposed with greater angles exposing a greater surface. This angle willtypically be between 20 and 90 degrees, depending upon the desired skewof the GaAs plume with respect to the substrate surface.

Substrates such as glass or other substrate materials may also be useddepending upon the desired application of the GaAs films of the presentinvention.

The substrate may be actively heated or allowed to remain at ambienttemperature.

The laser may be used with focusing optics to better energize thetarget. The advantage of pulsed laser deposition is that this method forthe stoichiometric films to 20 exclusive evaporation of a targetmaterial with an intense laser pulse before the resultant energizedatomic and molecular particles disproportions. Furthermore, with itappears that the lattice mismatch between silicon and GaAs does notaffect the quality of the deposit layer. The present invention alsomakes possible the production of eighth large amount of GaAs films froma single portion of target material, thus holding forth the potentialfor drastic cost reduction. Furthermore, because the standard growth ofGaAs is performed with extremely expensive methods such as molecularbeam epitaxy (MBE) and the metal-organic chemical vapor deposition(MOCVD), it is very likely that the present invention will find the widevariety of applications in the several device-forming industries.

The method of the present invention allows a layer of gallium arsenideto be deposited upon said silicon with a smoothness variation is lessthan 100 nanometers, and even as low as less than 20 nanometers.

The method of the present invention in qualitative terms achieves theseresults by irradiating the target surface with a laser of anywhere fromseveral milliwatts up to several watts, such that the correspondinglythe equivalent continuous-wave power of a pulsed laser generates a laserfluence (energy per area) sufficient to cause said gallium arsenide tobe explosively vaporized and deposited upon said substrate surface.Typical preferred values are in the range of from about 0.3 J/cm2 toabout 2.5 J/cm2, although values outside this range may also beeffective depending upon other variables such as distance between thesubstrate and the target, and the laser power applied. Accordingly, thepresent invention can be scaled based upon an appreciation of thepresent embodiments described herein.

For applications and devices requiring higher performance, it ispreferred that the target surface consists essentially of galliumarsenide, and that the substrate surface consists essentially ofsilicon, most preferably substantially pure gallium arsenide andsubstantially pure silicon; i.e., >99% pure.

Depending upon the desired application, the gallium arsenide may ben-doped or p-doped, and/or the silicon likewise may be n-doped orp-doped. Both the gallium arsenide and silicon may be allowed to remainnon-doped.

The target surface and substrate surface are typically disposed at adistance in the range of from about 1.0 cm to about 20 cm, while theapplied laser fluence of said laser light is in the range of from about0.3 J/cm2 to about 2.5 J/cm2.

Optionally, the target may be moved with respect to said substrateduring step (b), preferably although not exclusively by moving saidtarget surface within the plane defined thereby during step (b). Also,as an alternative, the substrate may be moved with respect to saidtarget during step (b), also preferably although not exclusively bymoving said substrate surface within the plane defined thereby duringstep (b). The target and/or the substrate may also be rotated about anaxis perpendicular to their respective surfaces during step (b). Thetarget and substrate may also be moved such that the ablation plume ismoved through other movement patterns, such as a raster, linear orspiral patterns, in order that larger substrate areas or correspondinglypatterned areas might be subjected to the uniform deposition of thepresent invention. The movement may be controlled through programmedlogic control devices to obtain reproducibly accurate movements. Thismakes possible the production of larger articles of the invention andtheir correspondingly larger devices as described herein. Where desired,plume opaque masks of appropriate high temperature resistant materials,may also be employed to provide shaped deposition patterns.

Preferably, the method of the invention includes the steps of: (a)providing in a vacuum: (1) a target comprising a target surface bearinggallium arsenide; and (2) a substrate comprising a substrate surfacebearing silicon; wherein said target surface and said substrate surfaceare in substantially parallel alignment; and irradiating said galliumwith a laser of sufficient laser fluence so as to cause said galliumarsenide to be explosively vaporized and deposited upon said substratesurface, so as to cause said gallium arsenide to be deposited upon saidsilicon uniformly and in a substantially stoichiometric ratio, andwhereby said layer of gallium arsenide deposited upon said silicon inhas a smoothness variation is less than 100 nanometers, and mostpreferably less than 20 nanometers.

The present invention also includes a layered article of manufacturearticle comprising: (a) a first layer comprising silicon; and (b) asecond layer comprising gallium arsenide; said gallium arsenide of saidfirst layer being layered onto said silicon of said second layeruniformly and in a substantially stoichiometric ratio, and whereby saidlayer of gallium arsenide deposited upon said silicon in has asmoothness variation is less than 100 nanometers, and most preferablyless than 20 nanometers.

The layers may be doped or non-doped as described above.

The present invention also includes a wide variety of electronic devicesand circuits comprising the layered article of gallium arsenide uponsilicon substrate. These include any electronic or optoelectronicdevice, such as multiplexers, photosensors, photodiodes or circuitrythat would benefit from the present inventive articles as will beappreciated from the present disclosure.

For instance, the invention includes an electronic circuit comprising arectifier, said rectifier comprising a layered article comprising: (a) afirst layer comprising silicon; and (b) a second layer comprisinggallium arsenide; said gallium arsenide of said first layer beinglayered onto said silicon of said second layer in a substantiallystoichiometric ratio, and whereby said layer of gallium arsenidedeposited upon said silicon has a smoothness variation less than about100 nanometers.

The invention also includes in general terms a tunable photodiodecomprising: (a) a diode structure having an input and output contacts,and comprising: (i) A first layer comprising silicon; and (ii) a secondlayer comprising gallium arsenide; said gallium arsenide of said firstlayer being layered onto said silicon of said second layer in asubstantially stoichiometric ratio, and whereby said layer of galliumarsenide deposited upon said silicon in has a smoothness variation isless than 100 nanometers; and (b) an adjustable source of electricalpotential connected to said input and output contacts, whereby the peakwavelength sensitivity of said diode to incident light thereupon may betuned through application of said electrical potential.

The invention also includes memory/logic/multiplexer devices including alayered article of gallium arsenide upon a silicon substrate. A memorydevice can store digitized information over a long period of time. Thestored information can be retrieved, deleted or overwritten by newerinformation. Normally, these structures are achieved with field effecttransistors, and this may be done with the GaAs/Si multiplexer bycharging a capacitance in the output channel (as an example).

Accordingly, the devices of the present invention include a memorydevice comprising: (a) a field effect transistor comprising a GaAs/Sicomposite comprising (i) a first layer comprising silicon; and (ii) asecond layer comprising gallium arsenide; said gallium arsenide of saidfirst layer being layered onto said silicon of said second layeruniformly and in a substantially stoichiometric ratio.

Also included in the invention is a logic device comprising: (a) one ormore input lines associated with one or more output lines according to alogic algorithm; (b) at least one signal input device associated withsaid one or more input lines, and least one signal output deviceassociated with said one or more output lines; at least one of said atleast one signal input device and at least one signal output devicebeing optical or electrical; and (c) a logic algorithm device forassociating said one or more input lines associated with one or moreoutput lines, said device comprising: (i) a first layer comprisingsilicon; and (ii) a second layer comprising gallium arsenide; saidgallium arsenide of said first layer being layered onto said silicon ofsaid second layer uniformly and in a substantially stoichiometric ratio.As an example, a logic device of the present invention may combine oneor more input lines to one or more output lines according to the BooleanLogic. The signal type of input or output lines may be optical orelectrical.

The articles of the present invention may also be used to make amultiplexer device comprising: (a) a plurality of input lines associatedwith a respective number of data sources, and an output line, and (b) adata selector; each of said input lines adapted to transfer data to saidoutput line when said data selector selects it, said data selectorcomprising: (i) a first layer comprising silicon; and (ii) a secondlayer comprising gallium arsenide; said gallium arsenide of said firstlayer being layered onto said silicon of said second layer uniformly andin a substantially stoichiometric ratio. A variation of this device isone wherein the plurality of input lines are optical input lines andwherein said output line is an electrical output line, and wherein thedata on the optical input line once selected by the data selector isconverted and transferred to the electrical output line when a biasvoltage is applied to said device. The multiplexer may have many inputlines and one output line. The information on the chosen input line istransferred to the output line when the device is enabled. The devicethus acts as a “data selector” in that it selects a data source andtransfers its data to the output. A hybrid multiplexer of the presentinvention may have many optical input lines and one electrical outputline. The information on the chosen optical input line is converted andtransferred to the electrical output line when the applied bias voltageenables the device. This device thus functions as a data selector inthat it selects an optical data source by the applied bias voltage andtransfers its data to the electrical output.

The invention also includes an apparatus for producing GaAs/Sicomposites by laser ablation, said apparatus comprising: (a) a source ofa beam of laser light; (b) a chamber adapted to maintain a vacuum in itsinterior while allowing passage of said beam of laser light into itsinterior; (c) a target comprising a target surface and disposed in saidchamber and in the path of said beam of laser light, said target surfacebearing gallium arsenide; (d) a substrate comprising a substrate surfaceand disposed in said chamber, said substrate surface bearing silicon,and aligned in substantially parallel alignment; and wherein source oflaser light is of sufficient power, and said target surface andsubstrate surface of at such sufficient proximity that, when said targetsurface is irradiated, said gallium arsenide vaporizes and is depositedupon said silicon uniformly and in a substantially stoichiometric ratio.

It is preferred that the laser light is provided by a pulsed laser, andthat the target surface and substrate surface are disposed at a distancein the range of from about 1.0 cm to about 20 cm. It is also preferredthat the applied laser fluence of said laser light is in the range offrom about 0.3 J/cm2 to about 2.5 J/cm2. The apparatus may also includea moveable support attached to said target so as to be capable of movingsaid target with respect to said substrate, such as an electric motorinside the chamber or a motor driving a shaft that transmits movement tothe moveable support. In most applications, it is preferred that themoveable support is attached to said target so as to be capable ofmoving said target surface within the plane defined thereby. Likewise, amoveable support may be attached to said substrate so as to be capableof moving said substrate with respect to said target, including movingsaid substrate surface within the plane defined thereby. A rotatingsupport may be used to rotate said target about an axis perpendicular tosaid target surface, and/or to rotate said substrate about an axisperpendicular to said substrate surface.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Novel features and advantages of the present invention, in addition tothose mentioned above, will become apparent to those skilled in the artfrom a reading of the following detailed description in conjunction withthe accompanying drawings summarized as follows:

FIG. 1 is a perspective schematic view of the apparatus in accordancewith one embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a cross-section schematic view of an apparatus in accordancewith one embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 3 is a basic schematic of a method in accordance with oneembodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 4 is a perspective view of a substrate bearing a layer of depositedtarget material in accordance with one embodiment of the presentinvention;

FIG. 5 a is a graph representing the results obtained through an articleof manufacture in accordance with one embodiment of the presentinvention;

FIG. 5 b is another graph representing the results obtained through anarticle of manufacture in accordance with one embodiment of the presentinvention;

FIG. 5 c is another graph representing the results obtained through anarticle of manufacture in accordance with one embodiment of the presentinvention;

FIG. 6 a is a plan view of a device demonstrating the rectifyingproperties of a device in accordance with one embodiment of the presentinvention;

FIG. 6 b is a graph representing the I-V characteristics of the deviceshown in FIG. 6 a.

FIG. 7 is a schematic of the device shown in FIG. 6, in accordance withone embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 8 is schematic of two embodiments of the present inventioninvolving moving targets and/or substrates, in accordance with anotherembodiment of the present invention;

FIGS. 9 shows a photograph of a sample article of manufacture producedin accordance with one embodiment of the present invention and attachedas shown in a schematic to the PC circuit used for testing;

FIG. 10 is a graph of X-ray diffraction patterns for twohetero-structures (p-GaAs/n-Si and n-GaAs/p-Si) produced by PLD inaccordance with one embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 11 is an AFM image of the surfaces of a p-GaAs/n-Si article ofmanufacture produced in accordance with one embodiment of the presentinvention (units in nm);

FIG. 12 is a three dimensional and top AFM image of the surface of then-GaAs/p-Si article of manufacture produced in accordance with oneembodiment of the present invention (units in μm);

FIG. 13 is a graph showing the I/V characteristics of p-GaAs/n-Si andn-GaAs/p-Si articles of manufacture produced in accordance with oneembodiment of the present invention.

FIGS. 14 a and 14 b are graphs showing respectively photocurrents (PC)generated from (a) p-GaAs/n-Si and (b) n-GaAs/p-Si made in accordancewith one embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 15 is a graph demonstrating a hybrid multiplexer in accordance withone embodiment of the present invention by switching the responsivity ofthe p-GaAs/n-Si hetero-junction between the Si substrate and thethin-film GaAs;

FIG. 16 is a schematic of a multiplexer that may be produced inaccordance with one embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 17 is a combination of (a) photographic image of a p-GaAs/n-Sisample and (b) the schematic sketch of the circuit used to measure thephotocurrent through a device in accordance with one embodiment of thepresent invention;

FIGS. 18( a) and 18(b) are respectively: (a) a graph of the photocurrentof the sample formed at 355 nm and (b) a graph of the photocurrent ofthe sample formed at 532 nm for various forward (+) and reverse biases;in accordance with one embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 19 is a graph of the photocurrent of the sample formed at 1064 nm,in accordance with one embodiment of the present invention;

FIGS. 20( a) and 20(b) are respectively graphs of the I/V characteristicin the dark of the sample formed (a) at 355 nm and (b) at 532 nm, inaccordance with one embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 21 is a graph of the I/V characteristic in the dark of the sampleformed at 1064 nm;

FIGS. 22( a) and 22(b) are respectively graphs of the X-ray patterns ofthe sample formed at (a) 355 nm and (b) 532 nm; and

FIG. 23 is a graph of the X-ray signal of the film formed at 1064 nm andof a Si substrate without film.

DETAIL DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENT(S)

In accordance with the foregoing summary, the following is a moredetailed description of the preferred embodiments of some of the presentinventions which are considered to be the best mode thereof.

With respect to the preferred embodiment of the deposition of thepresent invention, the GaAs ablation used the 532 nm emission of aNd:YAG laser (10 Hz repetition rate; 6 ns pulse) with a fluence of0.79-0.84 J/cm2. The laser spor size was about 1.8 mm×2.5 mm(elliptical). The thicknesses of the films were approximately 0.5 μm.During the deposition of about one hour in duration, the substrate wasnot heated and the ambient pressure was kept at about 10-6-10-7 torr.X-ray analysis showed that the films contain crystallites and by meansof an atomic force microscope (AFM), it is demonstrated that the filmsurfaces are fairly smooth. Using a monochromatic light source and bymeans of electrical contacts on the top and the rear of the sample, wemeasured the photocurrent (PC) through the junction using lock-intechnique. These measurements showed that the photocurrent spectra ofthe p-GaAs/n-Si diode crucially depend on the applied bias. At −0.7 V(reverse bias) the photocurrent maximum is at 930 nm, while at +0.5 V,the photocurrent maximum lies at 1056 nm. These maxima are in thevicinity to the bandgap of GaAs and Si, respectively. In other words, itis possible to switch between the spectral sensitivity of GaAs and Sivia an applied electric field. The device can be either used as aphoto-detector for which the sensitive wavelength range can be easilychosen by the applied bias or as hybrid multiplexer to convert twooptical inputs into one electrical output.

FIG. 1 shows a system for pulsed laser deposition including a vacuumchamber 1 include vacation with a vacuum source 2. Vacuum chamber 1 isconfigured for sustaining a low pressure atmosphere of approximately10-6 Torr. A laser source 3 emits a pulsed laser beam 4 that isdeflected by a mirror 5 through a window 6 in the chamber to a target 7.The laser is suitable for ablating the surface of the target 7.Preferably, the laser is a Nd:YAG type laser configured for emitting sixnanosecond pulses at a repetition rate of 10 Hertz at a wavelength of532 nm producing an energy of 1-2 Joule/centimeter—2 at the target.

As seen in FIG. 2, in operation, the laser beam 4 strikes the surface ofa GaAs wafer target 7 (i.e., p-type) positioned on a supportingstructure 7 a. The surface layer of the target 7 is a ablated by theradiation of the pulsed laser beam 4 and the decomposed target materialis projected in this case substantially perpendicular from the surfaceof the target 7 as a beam of energized atomic a molecular particles 9. Asubstrate 8 is positioned in a substantially parallel orientation withrespect to and directly opposing the surface of the target wafer 7. Thesurface of target 7 and the surface of substrate eight are preferablydisposed at a distance of from about numeral 2 cm to about 6 cm.Typically, the substrate 8 and will remain unheated will remain at anambient chamber temperature. The substrate 8 they deducted of siliconwith N-type doping. A deposition occurs as the energized atomicparticles from the target 7, in the form of a molecular beam ofparticles, are deposited as a thin stoichiometric film on the substrate8. The deposition on the substrate 8 is extremely smooth surface on theorder of nanometers in smoothness variation.

FIG. 3 illustrates a schematic diagram of a method in accordance withone embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 4 is a perspective view of a substrate 7 having deposited thereupona thin film of a target material 10 following laser ablation inaccordance with present invention. Figure numeral for shows thedeposited material 10 which is a thin stoichiometric target materialfilm having a thickness in the range of from about 1.0 to about 0.5micrometers to surface 10 a is extremely smooth. The combination of thetarget material film 10 and the substrate (i.e., silicon) provides aheterostructure that may be used for instance as a rectifyingphotodiode.

FIG. 5 a presents a graphical representation of the results that may beobtained in accordance with one embodiment of the present invention.FIG. 5 shows the advantageous optoelectronic features of the photodiodethat may be obtained from article of manufacture of the presentinvention. Such photodiode are capable of a tunable photoresponse. Forinstance, when a reverse bias between about −0.62 v and about −0.8 v issupplied to the photodiode, a shift in wavelength between as much asfrom 700 to 1180 nm can be achieved, wherein the photocurrent levelshave a reverse bias of from about −0.75 to −0.8 v thus providing thecombination of the greatest levels of photocurrent and ranges ofwavelength. Alternate bias level of −0.7 v, −0.6 v, and that −0.6 v asshown provide selected elevated photocurrent and wavelengthcombinations.

Although not limited to theory of operation, it is believed that, in thecase of p-GaAs/n-Si, only the electron-hole pairs generated in thedepletion at the p-GaAs/n-Si interface or within a diffusion length ofthe depletion area contribute to the photocurrent. Accordingly, in therange of the GaAs absorption, the heterojunction exhibits photocurrentonly if the depletion width is comparable to that in the siliconsubstrate or, at least, the diffusion length of the minority carriers inGaAs (electrons) is long to reach the depletion region in the siliconsubstrate. At sufficiently high reverse biases, the condition seems thefulfilled, whereas at lower reverse biases or zero bias the electronsare mostly trapped before an effective contribution to the photocurrenttakes place.

FIG. 5 b likewise shows the tunable photoresponse that may be achievedthrough the present invention. FIG. 5 b shows the dependence thephotocurrent on the applied bias, and shows the photocurrent inarbitrary units obtained with positive and negative biases of differentvoltages.

FIG. 5 c shows the photocurrent of a p-GaAs/n-Si sample. The p-GaAs wasdeposited by means of pulsed laser deposition on an n-Si substrate.

FIG. 6 a is a plan view of a device demonstrating the rectifyingproperties of a device in accordance with one embodiment of the presentinvention, with FIG. 6 b showing the I-V characteristics of the deviceshown in FIG. 6 a.

FIG. 7 is a schematic of the device shown in FIG. 6 showing circuit 11containing current source 12 and variable power supply 13. FIG. 7 alsoshows a layered article 14 comprising an n-Si layer 15, a p-GaAs layer16, a silver contact 17 and aluminum contacts 18 a and 18 b.

FIG. 8 is schematic of two embodiments of the present inventioninvolving moving targets and/or substrates, in accordance with anotherembodiment of the present invention. The target and/or substrate may bemoved by the use of any mechanical arrangement not inconsistent with thedeposition method of the present invention, such as mechanical motorsand actuators that may provide, for instance, circular, elliptical,raster-type or spiral movements, to allow for deposition over a greaterarea of a given substrate.

Because the pulsed laser deposition of GaAs a widely unknown,experiments were conducted with unheated substrates. Furthermore, oneshould bear in mind that the thermal expansion coefficients of silicon(2.60×10-6 C-1) and GaAs (5.73×10-6 through C-01) are notably different,which eventually causes the film to peel off the substrate duringcooling after deposition.

The method of the present invention may also be used to deposit multipleheterostructures and pn homojunctions may be prepared with providedpreferably that the layers are not to thick (i.e. a </=500 nm). In thisregard, homojunctions p-GaAs/n-GaAs have been prepared by employingpulsed laser deposition in accordance with the present invention.

One of the advantages of the present invention is that provides for thesimplicity of assembling GaAs on silicon with a structure that iscapable of providing a hybrid device for optically interfaceelectronics. From the visible (<700 nm) to the near infrared (11 50 nm),it is possible to achieve technically useful switching ratios betweenlow and high photocurrent (i.e. see the ratio between the specter at−0.64 and −0.8 volts) with rather small voltages, which can be easilyprovided by TTL logics and solar cells. Accordingly, is also possible touse the devices of the present invention for survey applications, whichuse the output of low-voltage sources such as piezoelectric crystals.

As to the smoothness of the film to the present invention the smoothnesscan be appreciated by examining the deposited target material film witha scanning microscope. This examination revealed a virtual absence ofdisuniformities or scratches on the surface. Achieved by use of anatomic force microscope show random distribution of graders and clusterson the surface with a death-of typically no more than 200 nm. However,it should be emphasized that this is not a measure of an overall filmroughness but indicates the appearance of the local features. Thesmoothness of the films produced in accordance with present inventionmay be as smooth as 1 nm, and compare favorably with GaAs deposited onsilicon through molecular beam epitaxy.

With respect to an example of a multiplexer in accordance with thepresent invention, two hetero-structures (p-GaAs/n-Si and n-GaAs/p-Si)have been produced with PLD described herein. The deposition wasachieved by focusing intense laser pulses on a rotating target material.The laser pulse causes an enormous increase in the target surfacetemperature up to several thousand degrees, far beyond the melting pointof GaAs (1511 K). This concentrated thermal energy breaks the bonds andthe material ablates in an explosive way. The event is so fast that thetarget material is not afforded sufficient time to disproportionate andthe ablated material condenses as a stoichiometric thin-film on thesubstrate.7 The target material was ablated by mounting the Si substratewafer face to face to the GaAs target with a gap of about 6 cm. For theablation, the second harmonic emission at 532 nm of a Nd:YAG laser wasused with a pulse duration of 6 ns and a repetition rate of 10 Hz. Thebeam was focused to a spot size of 1.8 mm×2.5 mm corresponding to anellipse with an area of 3.5 mm2. The ablation time was about 60 minutesand the laser flux was kept between 0.79-0.84 J cm-2 during this time.The process happened without heating the substrate in a vacuum chamberwith an ambient pressure of 10-6 torr. For the first sample, (100)p-type GaAs:Zn (1019 cm-3) and (100) n-type (1014 cm-3-1015 cm-3) Si:Ph2-inch wafers were used and, for the second sample, (100) n-type (1018cm-3) GaAs:Si and p-type (1014 cm-3-1016 cm-3) Si:B 2-inch wafers. Afterthe film deposition of both devices, Al contacts were evaporated on theGaAs film, and the Si substrate was provided with a conductive silverpaste. By this means, the current-voltage (I/V) characteristic and thephotocurrent (PC) across the junction were measured. The PC was measuredwith a lock-in amplifier chopping the light excitation at 107 Hz. FIG. 9shows the sample and the schematic PC circuit used.

The crystallographic structures of the thin-film GaAs samples wereinvestigated by an x-ray powder diffractometer using the CuKα line(λ=1.540562 Å). FIG. 10 is a graph of X-ray diffraction patterns for twohetero-structures (p-GaAs/n-Si and n-GaAs/p-Si) produced by identicalPLD parameters in accordance with one embodiment of the presentinvention. The Si substate: (100) orientation, lattice constant 5.43 Å,and band gap 1.12 eV. The GaAs target: (100) orientation, latticeconstant 5.65 Å, and band gap 1.42 eV. For the sample p-GaAs/n-Si(Target: Zn doped GaAs, 1019 cm-3; Substate: Ph doped Si wafer,1014-1015 cm-3), diffraction patterns at 2θ=27.4°, 2θ=45.4° and 2θ=53.9°have been observed. These reflections correspond to the Miller indices(111), (220), and (311) of the GaAs zincblende crystal structure. Thebroad background is an indication that, as for the GaAs/glass samples,16 the crystallites are embedded in an amorphous texture. Looking atFIG. 10, one might be tempted to say that the p-GaAs/n-Si sample showsmore crystallinity than the n-GaAs/p-Si sample (Target: Si doped GaAs,1018 cm-3; Substrate: Bo doped Si wafer, 1014-1016 cm-3). It wasestimated that the thickness of the films was at most 0.5 μm. As aconsequence, the portion of the x-ray signal related to the films isfairly weak and a thinner film in the case of the n-GaAs/p-Si samplemight cause the absence of patterns. The substrate is crystalline Siwith (100) orientation and because of selection rules the (100), (200)and (300) peaks of the substrate do not appear in FIG. 10. The firstobservable peak is the (400) reflex at 2θ=66.0°. We should stress inthis context that the (400) reflex is considerably broadened after PLDtook place. At 532 nm, the laser pulses are highly absorbed by the GaAstarget and the absence of clusters in the ablation plume cannot be ruledout. In this regard, while not limiting the invention to any phenomenon,it is possible that the impinging GaAs clusters degrade the Sisubstrate. Indeed, as shown in FIGS. 10 and 11, traces of clusterimpacts have been located with an atomic force microscope (AFM). Thedensity of craters, however, does not seem high enough to explain themodification of the Si crystal structure. Furthermore, clusters changethe morphology of the surface but to see a broadening of the (400)reflex, the bulk of the substrate needs to be modified. We believe thatthe reason for the modification of the crystallinity of the Si substrateis the expose to the heat of the ablation plume for one hour. Based onthis observation, it appears that the crystallinity of the GaAs filmdepends not only on the intrinsic deposition process of GaAs but also oncollateral effects of the plume on the substrate.

FIG. 13 shows the rectification properties of the articles made inaccordance with the invention. The results demonstrate that the dopingof the target was successfully transferred to the substrate to somecertain extent. Specifically, the n-GaAs/p-Si sample exhibited goodrelative rectifying features. The forward current increases fairlyproportional with the applied bias, whereas the backward current remainsalmost constant over the plotted voltage range. The fact that then-GaAs/p-Si sample forms the better diode than its counterpart issupportive of the indications above that the difference in thecrystallinity is a thickness effect rather than a quality differencebetween the samples. It is possible that GaAs:Si deposits in a smootherway on Si than GaAs:Zn by reducing the variety of involved elements tothe number three. It is also conceivable that the diverse atomic massesof the dopants Zn (65.38) and Si (28.09) cause a difference in thedeposition, which alters the electric properties of the GaAs/Sihetero-pairing. However, these theories in no way limit the invention.

FIGS. 14( a) and 14(b) show the PC spectra for various forward (+) andbackward (−) biases. A considerable dependence on the bias is observedfor both diodes. The measurements at 0.0 V are similar for both samplesbut considerable differences were observed for the reverse and forwardbiases. The p-GaAs/n-Si sample showed an increase in the responsivity inthe vicinity of the GaAs bandgap for negative biases, whereas the PC atforward bias was governed by the absorption in the Si substrate. Theresponsivity of the n-GaAs/p-Si sample does not show such notablecontributions of the GaAs film. This is a further indication that theGaAs film of the n-GaAs/p-Si is thinner than that of the p-GaAs/n-Sisample. Another reason for the unlikeness of the backwardly biased PCspectra is the quite different reverse current in both samples (see FIG.13). The reverse current of the p-GaAs/n-Si sample is at least one orderof magnitude below that of the counter sample. Therefore, at backwardbias, the electric field over the pn-junction is larger in FIG. 14( a)than in FIG. 14( b). On the other hand, the fast growing forward currentof the n-GaAs/p-Si causes the loss of responsivity already at modestpositive biases. FIG. 15 shows the PC at +0.5 V and −0.7 V of thep-GaAs/n-Si sample. The “butterfly” shape of the spectra can be used torealize a hybrid multiplexer. If −0.7 V is applied solely light at 930nm will result in the logic “1” at the output, and, in the other case,if +0.5 V is applied only light at 1056 nm switches the output to “1”.It does not matter if the other wavelength hits the sample at the sametime. Thus, the device converts two optical inputs into one electricaloutput, and thus may be applied in several memory, switching and logicdevices.

FIG. 16 is a schematic of a multiplexer device showing an application ofthe articles manufactured in accordance with the invention. FIG. 5 bshows the photocurrent of a p-GaAs/n-Si sample. The p-GaAs was depositedby means of pulsed laser deposition on an n-Si substrate. It turned outthat the photocurrent of the sample is very sensitive to the polarity ofthe bias (“+” is forward and “−” is backward direction). In fact thehetero-pairing can be used as a multiplexer. For instance, if oneapplies −0.7 V only the 930 nm light will result in “1” at the output,and in the other case, if one applies +0.5 V only light at 1056 nmswitches the output to “1”. It does not matter if the other wavelengthhits the sample. A truth table demonstrating how this device might beapplied in a logic circuit is as follows:

Input Applied Voltage Incident Wavelength Logic Output −0.7 V 930 nm1056 nm 1 −0.7 V dark 1056 nm 0 +0.5 V 930 nm dark 0 +0.5 V 930 nm 1056nm 1

Accordingly, by employing PLD, the present invention allows for thesuccessful deposition of polycrystalline thin-film GaAs on Si. Theresults show that photodiodes can be formed in a very straightforwardway by depositing doped GaAs on counter doped Si, i.e., during PLD thedoping of the target is sufficiently maintained in the deposited film inorder to realize a pn-junction. Specifically, the p-GaAs/n-Si diodeshows appealing bias dependent PC properties, which are of interest forhybrid multiplexing devices in telecommunications. The present inventionalso makes possible the use polycrystalline PLD GaAs as substrateprovider for MBE-based industries.

With respect to an example of an experimental PLD setup used inaccordance with the present invention, this is described herein and inRef. 10 below. In order to determine whether highly absorbed laserpulses form different films than transmissive pulses we employed theemissions of a Nd:YAG laser (6 ns, 10 Hz) at 355 nm, 532 nm, and 1064 nmfor the material ablation. The target was a 2-inch (100) p-type zincdoped GaAs wafer (1019 cm-3) and the material was ablated with a laserfluence of 0.79-0.84 J/cm2. The ambient pressure during the ablationprocess was kept at 10-6 Torr and the substrate, which was a 2-inchn-type phosphorous doped (100) Si wafer (≈1014 cm-3), was not heated.The ablation took place for one hour. At the fluence employed, thedeposition rate at 1064 nm, 532 nm, and 355 nm is approximately 1nm/min., 10 nm/min., and 5 nm/min., respectively, and the resulting filmthickness for samples GaAs:1064, GaAs:532, and GaAs:355 is 60 nm, 600nm, and 300 nm, respectively. The optical penetration depths were asfollows: sample with 355 nm: 14 nm; sample with 532 nm: 130 nm; samplewith 1064 nm: ≅1 mm. The optical penetration depth depends upon theadsorption of GaAs at the specific wavelength. The different penetrationdepths result in different affected volumes, energy densities andtemperatures. Thus the ablation processes vary with these parameters.

FIG. 17 shows a typical device structure and the schematic circuit usedfor the PC measurements including (a) an image of a p-GaAs/n-Si sampleand (b) the schematic sketch of the circuit used to measure the PC. Inorder to measure the PC and current-voltage (I/V) characteristic acrossthe junction, aluminum contacts have been evaporated on the GaAs filmand the Si substrate was contacted with silver paste. The opticalexcitation, typically on the order of 100 W cm-2, was performed with ahalogen lamp attached to a ½ m monochromator with a resolution of 0.5nm. For the PC measurements, which have been carried out at roomtemperature, a lock-in amplifier and a programmable 100 V power supplyhave been employed. A high stability optical chopper provided thereference frequency (107 Hz) for the lock-in amplifier by chopping thelight at the exit of the monochromator.

FIGS. 18( a), 18(b), and 19 show the PC vs. energy for the samplesformed at 355 nm, 532 nm and 1064 nm. The PC response is plotted forvarious forward (+) and reverse (−) biases. The data have been correctedwith a calibrated Si photodiode and the results are shown in A/W.

The PC shows a considerable dependence on the bias for all threesamples. The responses in FIGS. 18( a) and 18(b) appear to vary more ata first glance as they actually do: The measurements at 0.0 V, +0.5 V,+1.0 V, and +1.5 V are very similar for both samples. Differences havebeen observed when a reverse bias was applied. The responsivity isgrowing much faster with reverse bias in FIG. 18( b) than in FIG. 18(a). The divergence in the reversely biased responses is caused bydifferences in the I/V characteristics, which are plotted in FIGS. 20(a) and 20(b). At reverse biases up to −1.5 V, the sample GaAs:532 has aclearly lower reverse current than the sample GaAs:355. Hence, incomparison with FIG. 18( a), the electric field at the junction islarger in FIG. 18( b) and increases more effectively the built-inpotential and moves the sensitivity peak of the photodiode towardshigher energies. This explanation, however, is not sufficient becauseFIG. 21 reveals that sample GaAs:1064 has the highest reverse current ofall samples but, nevertheless, delivers the largest A/W values underreverse bias, as it can be seen in FIG. 19. Thus, it appears thatcarrier trapping at the interface plays an important role for theformation of the PC.

It is worthwhile to stress at this point that the emissions at 355 nmand 532 nm are highly absorbed and transfer the material between targetand substrate by ablation of a small surface segment of the targetmaterial. On the other hand, the infrared emission at 1064 nm is almostnot absorbed and heats up a large volume in the target and the formationprocess of the GaAs films ought to be quite close to vacuum evaporation,as it was pointed out for thin-film PLD CdS.12 Consequently, it is fairto presume that the sample formed at 1064 nm exhibits a smootherinterface, i.e., has less grain boundaries and rigid structures, thanthe samples formed with ablation. The smoother interface might favor theescape of excited photo-carriers via the contacts before interfacialrecombination due to traps takes place, increasing the responsivity ofthe device. In forward direction, the situation is opposite. The samplesGaAs:355 and GaAs:532 exhibit PC up to +2.0 V and +1.5 V (see FIGS. 18(a) and 18(b)), respectively, while the sample GaAs:1064 in FIG. 19 didnot show PC at 1.5 V. The loss of responsivity is caused by thedirect-current (DC) shortcut of the alternating-current (AC) signal inthe sample. In FIG. 21, it is seen that at +2.0 V a current of almost0.1 mA flew through the sample and almost all carriers are involved inthe formation of the DC signal and the pn-junction loses its lightsensitivity.¹³

FIGS. 22( a), 22(b) and 23 show the x-ray patterns of the GaAs:355,GaAs:532 and GaAs:1064 samples. The GaAs films show a preferredorientation towards the (111) plane. The Miller indices for eachidentified GaAs peak are indicated in the figures. For comparison, inFIG. 23, the x-ray signal of a Si substrate without thin-film GaAs isshown. The comparison reveals that the broad reflections are not anamorphous underground but are caused by the Si wafer. Hence, we deducethat the samples exhibit a polycrystalline structure or consist ofcrystallites embedded in an amorphous texture similar to the filmsdeposited on glass. The results reveal that the quality of PLD GaAs doesnot depend on the substrate used, i.e., lattice match and crystallinityof the substrate are no issues for PLD and, additionally, PLD does notrequire substrate heating for the formation of polycrystalline GaAs.FIG. 23 shows that sample GaAs:1064 does not show patterns. This is notcaused by the impossibility to form crystalline PLD GaAs at 1064 nm butby the circumstance that this film is considerable thinner than theothers. Hence, no crystallites are yet formed and the material textureis amorphous. It is also possible that the cluster deposition at 355nmand 532 nm enforces the build-up of crystalline islands faster than theatomic evaporation at 1064 nm.

Notably, the x-ray underground peak of the substrate is shifted tosmaller angles for the samples GaAs:355 and GaAs:532 in comparison tosample GaAs:1064, which shows practically the identical x-ray spectrumas the Si wafer. Furthermore, it was observed that a broadening of theSi x-ray patterns for GaAs/Si samples formed at 532 nm. It is stillsubject of investigation but it seems that the clusters in the plume ofhighly absorbed laser pulses cause a transition of the Si crystal to amore amorphous structure. This observation appears to support the notionthat the interface of the GaAs:355 and GaAs:532 samples is of lessquality than that of sample GaAs:1064. Thus, the trap formation appearsnot to be solely caused by difficulties during the GaAs deposition butalso by lowering the crystal quality of the Si substrate.

The foregoing demonstrates that PLD is capable of the formation ofpolycrystalline thin-film GaAs on Si. We have achieved the results inthe most straightforward manner without heating the substrate. The workstresses the capability of PLD to transfer the doping from the target tothe deposited film: The rectifying features in conjunction with the biasdependent PC confirm that the doping of the target is maintained in thedeposited thin-film GaAs, at least to a certain amount. We plan Hallmeasurements to clarify the exact doping concentration in the films. Wealso formed the counterpart of the investigated samples, i.e.,n-GaAs/p-Si, which shows rectification and PC as well. The resultsillustrate that PLD is a fairly simple straightforward method, whichfacilitate the formation of competitive thin-film GaAs on Si foroptoelectronic devices and substrate materials.

Additional background and information relating to the present inventionis provided by the following references which are hereby incorporated byreference.

REFERENCES

-   1. M. S. Unlu, G. Munns, J. Chen, T. Won, H. Unlu, H. Morkoc, G.    Radhakrishnan, J. Katz, and D. Verret, “Characteristics of annealed    p/n junctions between GaAs and Si (100),” Appl. Phys. Lett. 51, pp.    1995-1997, 1987.-   2. A. Georgakilas, P. Panayotatos, J. Stoemenos, J.-L. Mourrain,    and A. Christou, “Achievements and limitations in optimized GaAs    films grown on Si by molecular-beam epitaxy,” J. Appl. Phys. 71, pp.    2679-2701, 1992.-   3. V. Alberts, J. H. Neethling, and A. W. Leitch, “Correlation    between structural, optical, and electrical properties of GaAs grown    on (001) Si,” J. Appl. Phys. 75, pp. 7258-7265, 1994.-   4. J. Arokiaraj, T. Soga, T. Jimbo, and M. Umeno, “High-quality GaAs    on Si substrate by epitaxial lift-off technique using SeS₂ ,” Appl.    Phys. Lett. 75, pp. 3826-3828, 1999.-   5. D. S. Burgess, “Motorola grows GaAs on Silicon,” Photonics    Technology News October 2001.-   6. N. Chandrasekaran, T. Soga, and T. Jimbo, “GaAs film on Si    substrate transplanted from GaAs/Ge structure by direct bonding,”    Appl. Phys. Lett. 82, pp. 3892-3894, 2003.-   7. D. L. Smith, Thin-Film Deposition, Principles & Practice, p. 394,    MacGraw-Hill, Inc., New York, 1995.-   8. V. S. Ban and D. A. Kramer, “Thin films of semiconductor and    dielectrics produced by laser evaporation,” J. Mat. Sci. 5, pp.    978-982, 1970.-   9. D. B. Chrisey and G. K. Hubler (Eds.), Pulsed Laser Deposition of    Thin Films, p. 260, John Wiley & Sons, New York, 1994.-   10. B. Ullrich, A. Erlacher, S. Yano, R. Schroeder, T. G. Gerasimov,    and H. J. Haugan, “Preparation of thin-film GaAs on glass by    pulsed-laser deposition,” in Proceedings of SPIE Vol. 4977 Photon    Processing in Microelectronics and Photonics II, edited by Alberto    Pique, Koji Sugioka, Peter R. Herman, Jim Fieret, Friedrich G.    Bachmann, Jan J. Dubowski, Willem Hoving, Kunihiko Washio, David B.    Geohegan, Frank Traeger, and Kouichi Murakami, (SPIE, Bellingham,    Wash., 2003) 180-187.-   11. A. Erlacher and B. Ullrich, “All-optical digitizing of laser    transmission through thin-film GaAs on glass,” Semicond. Sci.    Technol. 19, pp. L9-L12, 2004.-   12. B. Ullrich, H. Sakai, and Y. Segawa, “Optoelectronic properties    of thin-film CdS formed by ultraviolet and infrared pulsed-laser    deposition,” Thin Solid Films 385, pp. 220-224, 2000.-   13. B. Ullrich, N. M. Dushkina, H. Ezumi, S. Keitoku, and T.    Kobayashi, “Dependence of the photocurrent on a bias of a    p-InP/n-CdS heterojunction formed by laser ablation,” Solid State    Commun. 103, 635-637, 1997.-   14. K. W. Eisenbeiser and J. Ramdani, “Structure and method for    fabricating semiconductor structures and devices not lattice matched    to the substrate,” US Patent 20020030246, 2002.-   15. J. Carlin, S. A. Ringel, E. A Fitzgerald, and M. Bulsara, “High    Quality GaAs Growth by MBE on Si Using GeSe Buffers and Prospects    for Space Voltaics,” Prog. Photovolt: Res. Appl. 8, pp. 323-332,    2000.-   16. B. Ullrich, A. Erlacher, S. Yano, R. Schroeder, T. G. Gerasimov,    and H. J. Haugan, “Preparation of thin-film GaAs on glass by    pulsed-laser deposition,” in Proceedings of SPIE Vol. 4977 Photon    Processing in Microelectronics and Photonics II, edited by Alberto    Pique, Koji Sugioka, Peter R. Herman, Jim Fieret, Friedrich G.    Bachmann, Jan J. Dubowski, Willem Hoving, Kunihiko Washio, David B.    Geohegan, Frank Traeger, and Kouichi Murakami, (SPIE, Bellingham,    Wash., 2003) 180-187.-   5. D. L. Smith, Thin-Film Deposition, Principles & Practice, p. 394,    MacGraw-Hill, Inc., New York, 1995.

The preferred methods, apparatus and devices of the present inventionare described herein is not intended to be exhaustive or to limit theinvention to the precise forms disclosed. They are chosen and describedto explain the principles of the invention and the application of themethod to practical uses so that others skilled in the art may practicethe invention.

Having shown and described preferred embodiments of the invention, thoseskilled in the art will realize that many variations and modificationsmay be made to affect the described invention and still be within thescope of the claimed invention. Thus, many of the elements indicatedabove may be altered or replaced by different elements which willprovide the same result and fall within the spirit of the claimedinvention. It is the intention, therefore, to limit the invention onlyas indicated by the scope of the claims.

1. An electronic circuit comprising a rectifier, said rectifiercomprising a layered article comprising: (a) a first layer comprisingsilicon; and (b) a second layer comprising gallium arsenide said galliumarsenide of said first layer being layered onto said silicon of saidsecond layer in a substantially stoichiometric ratio, and whereby saidlayer of gallium arsenide deposited upon said silicon has a smoothnessvariation less than about 100 nanometers. Memory/Logic/MultiplexerDevices including a Layered article of Gallium Arsenide upon SiliconSubstrate
 2. A memory device comprising: (a) a field effect transistorcomprising a GaAs/Si composite comprising: (i) a first layer comprisingsilicon; and (ii) a second layer comprising gallium arsenide; saidgallium arsenide of said first layer being layered onto said silicon ofsaid second layer uniformly and in a substantially stoichiometric ratio.3. A logic device comprising: (a) one or more input lines associatedwith one or more output lines according to a logic algorithm; (b) atleast one signal input device associated with said one or more inputlines, and least one signal output device associated with said one ormore output lines; at least one of said at least one signal input deviceand at least one signal output device being optical or electrical; and(c) a logic algorithm device for associating said one or more inputlines associated with one or more output lines, said device comprising:(i) a first layer comprising silicon; and (ii) a second layer comprisinggallium arsenide; said gallium arsenide of said first layer beinglayered onto said silicon of said second layer uniformly and in asubstantially stoichiometric ratio.
 4. A multiplexer device comprising:(a) a plurality of input lines associated with a respective number ofdata sources, and an output line, and (b) a data selector; each of saidinput lines adapted to transfer data to said output line when said dataselector selects it, said data selector comprising: (i) a first layercomprising silicon; and (ii) a second layer comprising gallium arsenide;said gallium arsenide of said first layer being layered onto saidsilicon of said second layer uniformly and in a substantiallystoichiometric ratio.
 5. A multiplexer device according to claim 4wherein said plurality of input lines are optical input lines andwherein said output line is an electrical output line, and wherein thedata on the optical input line once selected by the data selector isconverted and transferred to the electrical output line when a biasvoltage is applied to said device.